Eimskip 245 0 Kommentare Fourth quarter and full year 2023 results

Highlights of Q4 2023 results

Fair results for fourth quarter, given the challenging global environment.
Revenue amounted to EUR 201.5 million, a decrease of EUR 54.2 million or 21.2% when compared with Q4 2022.
Expenses amounted to EUR 178.8 million, a decrease of EUR 38.5 million or 17.7% from previous year.
- Salary expenses increased by EUR 1.6 million or 4.4% due to general wage increases but currency effect of EUR 1.1 million positively affects the comparison to Q4 2022.
EBITDA for the quarter amounted to EUR 22.7 million compared to EUR 38.4 million in 2022. EBITDA ratio was 11.3% compared to 15% for the same quarter last year.
Net earnings amounted to EUR 8.4 million compared to EUR 21.8 million for the same period in 2022.
Liner services with acceptable performance given traditional seasonality, although the results are marked by transformation in Trans-Atlantic rates compared to the previous year when they were on an elevated level.
Sound performance of international forwarding, with strong volume and good margins despite significant decrease in both revenue and expenses due to changed market landscape.

Highlights of the year 2023

Good financial results for the year 2023 despite swift market changes from previous year.
Revenue amounted to EUR 827.5 million, a decrease of EUR 243.1 million or 22.7% when compared with the year 2022.
Total expenses amounted to EUR 704.2 million, a decrease of EUR 203.4 million mainly driven by cost of 3rd party services and lower bunker prices.
EBITDA amounted to EUR 123.4 million compared to EUR 163.1 million in the record year 2022.
EBIT amounted to EUR 61 million compared to EBIT of EUR 101.5 million in 2022.
Continued good contribution from the affiliate ElbFeeder due to favorable charter fixtures on its vessels, with Eimskip’s share of earnings in 2023 amounting to EUR 13.4 million.
Net earnings amounted to EUR 54.5 million, compared to EUR 85.3 million in 2022.
Total maintenance CAPEX in 2023 amounted to EUR 25.4 million, which is in line with the published plan of EUR 26-29 million, compared to EUR 24.2 million in the year before.
New investments of EUR 17.8 million in 2023 compared to EUR 9.7 million in 2022. The single largest project in 2023 was the construction of a new warehouse, cold storage and headquarters in Faroe Islands, which started in 2022 and will be completed in 2024. The second largest investment in 2023 was an automated container gate in Sundahöfn, a project that started in 2022 and was successfully finalized in Q4 2023.
Good cash flow from operations and a cash position of EUR 32.5 million at year-end.
Leverage ratio at 1.43x at year-end compared to 1.01x by end of 2022 while long-term target is 2-3x. Equity ratio 50.4% at year-end compared to a long-term target ratio of around 40%.
The Board of Directors will propose to the Annual General Meeting, which will be held on 7 March 2024, to pay approximately EUR 25 million in dividend for the year 2023, equivalent to 46% of Net Earnings.

Container liner delivered good results although Trans-Atlantic market conditions changed dramatically over the course of the year from highly elevated levels.
- Total liner volume saw slight decrease from previous year, primarily driven by decline in Trans-Atlantic volume while other trade lanes remained on a similar level.
- Robust import volume to Iceland throughout the year on back of high economic activity and strong focus on customer service.
- Export volume from Iceland was in line with previous year although below expectations due to lower level of salmon harvesting and industrial production.
- Good contribution from Faroe Islands with strong export volume offsetting decrease in imports due to economic slowdown.
- First signs of decrease in Trans-Atlantic freight rates started to show in the beginning of the year before falling sharply in Q2 and Q3 until levelling off in the last quarter of 2023.
- Trans-Atlantic revenue is the single largest driver behind decrease in EBITDA YoY.
Norway reefer liner performance subpar compared to previous year with less whitefish quota and changed market dynamics which affected freight rates combined with weak Norwegian Krona against Euro.
Generally, a good year for international forwarding with overall solid returns despite significant changes in market conditions from previous year.
Strategic changes to the sailing system were implemented in May alongside preparations for a larger scale change that will be implemented at the end of February 2024.
- Purpose of the changes is to enhance reliability, save cost and reduce emissions.
- Response to upcoming environmental regulations, revenue decrease due to market conditions and to meet increased customer demand for environmentally friendly transportation.